This Culinary Proust was originally published in January of 2013.
From left: Daniela, Adriano, Matteo, Elisa and Giancarlo Zenari.
In 1984 Adriano and Glenda Zenari opened their kitchen shop in the brand new Manulife Tower, creating in one moment a new way to shop, dine and enjoy life in our city. Zenari’s, vibrant, energetic, was the hub of everything food related: guest chefs, cookbook signings, high-end kitchen equipment and the best in Italian design. This was where you bought an espresso machine or compared French and Italian extra-virgin olive oils. This was where you checked out the latest from Alessi. This was where a generation or two of aspiring cooks learned what crostini was. This was where Edmonton grew up, culinarily speaking.
Now, we buy cookware all over town and watch our culinary entertainment on TV.
But what you can’t get anywhere else is Zernari’s Thursday night dinner when Adrianos’ gioia di vivere is at its most welcoming. There are several courses — mussels, pastas, roast chicken, veal shanks, fish. Adriano orchestrates, always with a glass of Prosecco in hand. Guests drink wine, chat among tables, and eat well-prepared, reasonably-priced food. It’s lively, and somewhat chaotic in the best possible way.
Long live Thursday nights. Even though Adriano says he’s retiring and the kids are minding the store along with their wonderful manager Franca Brusi, Adriano is sure to be around, proffering bubbles and keeping an eye on things. Say hello.
Hometown?
Vincenza in the Veneto.
What did you do before opening the shop?
Research in medical physics.
Where would you like to live?
Of course I would love to live in my hometown near Venice.
Your favourite food and drink?
Any good Italian food and Amarone.
What do you most appreciate in your friends?
Honesty and directness, no hiding. Tell me the truth.
Your favourite qualities in a dish?
The freshness of ingredients, something that will complement. And not too many ingredients.
A cook?
Simplicity in presenting the recipe.
A wine?
Full body and fruity, powerful in the middle, with good balance.
Who would be at your dream dinner table (dead or alive)?
All my kids, like we do now.
Who would cook?
I’d do the cooking.
Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
I love it, it’s fantastic
Current obsession/exploration?
What I live by everyday, the pleasure of food and wine in the right context — not a weak wine with a strong dish for example.
Meaningful/crazy experience at Zenari’s?
We have experiences like that almost daily.
We had a dinner party where we presented a bottle of Fini balsamico and some people started drinking it. They were drinking the vinegar like wine.
Best thing that ever happened to you?
Being around here and meeting all these people. Kids we saw growing up with their parents now come with their kids. Last week a couple came on their 60th wedding anniversary because they’ve been coming here for a long time.
Mentors?
People I admire: Marcella Hazan, Peter Jackson (Jack’s Grill), Umberto Menghi, James Barber, Jacques Pepin — love his techniques, and in physics, professor John Macdonald.
Favourite casual cheap and cheerful/afterwork food?
I like to go to Bistro Praha for pork hocks and sauerkraut as I don’t make it myself.
Philosophy?
We’re here now, enjoy it.
‘How beautiful is youth, that is always slipping away! Whoever wants to be happy, let him be so: of tomorrow there‘s no knowing.’ – Lorenzo De‘ Medici.
What’s next?
I like to sit back here at the bar and watch my kids. My daughter Elisa is doing a fantastic job, little Daniela is running the housewares very well. My kids are taking over. I love it.